Home-made Texan Apple Pie
What’s the best ever apple pie recipe? That’s easy. It’s the pie that has been lovingly prepared by family or friends, inside the warmth of an inviting home, fresh apples ready to be sliced and heavenly memories about to be made.
Over the weekend friend Rio and I transformed ourselves into Able Kitchen Assistants to two very accomplished bakers in our circle of chums, Camilla and Sunny, who had decided to turn their hand to baking the best ever apple pie – Texan Styles…
Best Texan Apple Pie – Ingredients (for one pie):
Begin by inviting your friends over for an afternoon bake-off when your home is aching for some good company.
What you’ll need:
1 x Pie crust rolled out
5 x Granny Smith Apples & 5 x Fuji Apples, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp each of cinnamon & nutmeg
1/4 tsp each of mixed spice & ground allspice
2/3 cup sugar
2 tbs flour
1 tbs custard powder
For the pie crust, 2 egg whites beaten lightly – to coat the entire pie crust
Next, bake the egg-coated pie crust for 7 minutes in 220°C. Let sit to cool. Now mix those sliced apples! Use all those spices, flour and custard powder to coat the apples, mix round and round till you see that every slice is infused with the aromatics. Mmm…
Layer carefully within the glazed pie crust till they are piled high. Embed 4 nobs of butter (a tablespoon each) into the apple layers, cover the pie with foil, and bake for 10 minutes in a 220°C oven.
Finally, the Streusel Topping. What you’ll need:
1/2 packed cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp each of cinnamon & nutmeg
1/4 tsp each of allspice & mixed spice
3/4 cup each of instant oats & flour
1/2 cup butter
Mix the lot with your hands, get a feel of the texture, ensure the butter becomes one with the oats and all the spices have merged into this topping. Get busy with carefully cloaking those spicy apple slices with this streusel topping: begin at the crown of the pie, adding small handfulls all the way to the bottom, and almost tucking the rest of the mixture into the pie’s perimeter. Bake till golden brown.
Now, most important: pop the kettle on. Retrieve the icecream from the freezer. Its time to reward and recognise your Able Kitchen Assistants with warm slices of pie, scoops of the best quality vanilla bean icecream you can afford and of course a pot of tea. I think I have been transformed! Best apple pie EVER!!